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EmoPulse SMILE Smartwatch - check it out

Posted by Carles CJ Juzang on April 29, 2015 at 2:00pm

SMARTWATCH

EmoPulse Smile, Best Smartwatch So Far

By  | June 14, 2013

EmoPulse Smile, the best smartwatch we have seen so far, hits Indiegogo in search of crowd funding. Showcasing the capabilities of its incredible (if true) Artificial Intelligence algorithm, the EmoPulse Smile could very well be the first truly “Smart” watch.

A SMARTWATCH WITH ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE


“Best Smartwatch So Far” … That is a pretty big claim so early in the development of this latest wearable computing device to appear on the popular crowdfunding springboard Indiegogo. However, if this smartwatch actually gets built with the specifications and features boasted of in its online venture capital grab, then it is a moniker earned. Although the wearable computing/smart device industry is in its infancy, most shipping products have achieved the the ability to “compute” but have fallen far short of being considered “smart”. The EmoPulse Smile intends to change that. Incorporating an impressive battery of predictive Artificial Intelligence features, the Smile smartwatch intends to cater to the needs of its users before being asked to do so, obviating the need for a complicated user interface.

EmoPulse claims that the Smile smartwatch will learn your likes and dislikes and offer suggestions based upon your personal tastes. It will also gather user data via emo-sensors to enhance the self-learning process, making it an invaluable virtual assistant that never leaves your wrist. And, by integrating a sophisticated speech recognition and generation system, the EmoPulse Smile accomplishes voice commanded tasks without the need for traditional physical user input … generally, a cumbersome task on diminutive wearable computing devices. We would very much like to see a demonstration video of the AI in action to get a true feel for its personality and predictive capabilities.

EmoPulse Smile Smartwatch

EmoPulse Smile Smartwatch

EMOPULSE SMILE SPECIFICATIONS AND FEATURES

The EmoPulse Smile will be available in either black or white, and in various sizes to accomodate men, women, and extremely well taken care of children. Sporting the latest OMAP 5 processor, the watch will allow for desktop quality gaming and up to three simultaneous streams of HD video … wow. With an integrated 128 GB or 256 GB of storage, USB 3.0 and Thunderbolt ports will be provided for high-speed data transfers, a welcome first for any wearable computing device.

Power is claimed to last 7 days on a full charge, an impressive feat considering the need for constant charging has typically been the achilles heel of processor rich smartwatches to this point. However, the girth of this device should provide ample room within which to stuff enough battery to satisfy that claim. An integrated 4G communications radio will allow the Smile to function as an extension of the user’s smartphone or as an independent stand-alone watch phone … a nice feature for when inconvenience precludes packing your cell. Another nice feature, especially for audiophiles, is the ability to stream uncompressed CD quality sound over bluetooth via PurePath technology, a boon for those of us that find typical compressed mp3s shrill, dry, and irritating.

Here is where it gets spicy: the entry price for all of this ultra-cool technology … $480. While not a lot considering what the EmoPulse Smile delivers, it is absolutely the most expensive smartwatch to date. It will be interesting to see how consumers respond as that price-point has yet to be tested. Nonetheless, if the watch can do all that it claims, we would gladly drop 5 bills to capture such cutting edge tech.

EmoPulse Smartwatch

EmoPulse Smile Smartwatch

CROWDFUNDING ON INDIEGOGO

Problems with the campaign … the price for 128 GB version is listed as $480 in the title, and $380 in the article body. Obviously, one of these is wrong and, unfortunately, it is likely the latter. In addition, storage capacity is listed in Gb (gigabits) on Indiegogo and not the standard GB (gigbytes). We assume this is simply a transcription error. However, if it isn’t, divide the 128 or 256 by 8 to determine the true capacity. Hopefully, these listing issues will be realized and resolved by the time you read this article.

If this watch achieves its funding goals (which we hope it does) and comes to fruition, it could very well be the first truly revolutionary product to emerge from the fledgling wearable computing developer community. A smartwatch that is actually “smart” and not simply capable of data input and retrieval is exactly what consumers are waiting for and expect from the next generation of wearable technology. Can EmoPulse fullfill those expectations? We hope so. However, the company, while based in the United States, is a complete unknown and has yet to create and ship a product. Accordingly, they have no past upon which to base an experiential opinion. So, all we can say at this point is good luck on your project … we’ll be watching!

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Manhattan...

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on April 29, 2015 at 11:01am
Shiva. Image Source: Hiroshima Poetry, related to the embed below


Topics: Existentialism, Manhattan Project, Nuclear Physics, Nuclear Power


Having lived through the "duck-and-cover" drills of the sixties and seventies (for me at least), the fact we don't do them anymore doesn't reduce the existential danger. We have the unique position in species of intelligence on this Earth, a way - as Carl Sagan would have said - for the Cosmos to "know itself." We're also the only species that could take the other sentient ones on our globe into oblivion by myriad, maddening means. The drama isn't too accurate, and some of the characterizations aren't spot-on or accurate (like Oppenheimer as "jerk" - he wasn't in what I've read), but it should spark some interest in the project in general, and nuclear physics in particular.


Physics Buzz: This fall (2014), a new primetime drama appeared on the television network WGN America, featuring scientists at Los Alamos working tirelessly--desperately, even--to develop nuclear weapons during World War II, all while maintaining utmost secrecy. Manhattan draws on the rich underlying history of its namesake, the Manhattan Project, but steers clear of documentary tendencies. Whereas the premise of the show and several key figures are largely based on their real-life counterparts, the main cast is populated by fictional characters, whose personal and scientific struggles acquaint us with the broader themes of privacy, government surveillance, and trust. Today on the podcast, we discuss how Manhattan brings nuclear physics to primetime TV, and what’s gained or lost along the way.

It was a great scientific triumph, and we won the war. It had many spin-offs in peaceful space program (even as that was essentially the Cold War above our heads) and nuclear physics applications - fission initially, then hopefully fusion eventually - as well as the analysis of what is now known as Black Holes. I suspect however, it was also Dr. Oppenheimer's greatest regret:
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The Long View...

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on April 28, 2015 at 6:30am
Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.


Topics: #BlackLivesMatter, Baltimore, Civil Rights, Commentary


I really get the anger. I've penned it on the anniversary of the surrender of the South in the Civil War, and the needless death of Walter Scott. Dr. King once said: "a riot is the language of the unheard." That I think assumes you've tried - through legitimate means - to have your voice heard.

You seem to have a rich history of rioting: 1812; 1868. If you must get angry: why didn't you ask why the city of Baltimore hasn't fully recovered economically from the riots of 1968 when Dr. King was assassinated? I was five, but I remember that day well: Confederate flags, honking horns riding past my kindergarten, shouting very clearly "I'm glad that n-----r's gone!" Some memories don't leave you. They stay with you and shape your worldview. I remember well the anger from older teenagers that took to the streets in North Carolina, but specifically of note in Baltimore, Maryland. Why haven't you gotten angry with the jobs that have been shipped out of this country to save money on the highest expense of any company: salaries? Why haven't you gotten angry at the substitution of science courses with pseudoscience, that puts this country at a disadvantage globally in the competition for employment and high-paying jobs? Why haven't you gotten angry about the socially-engineered achievement gap that ensures a De Facto apartheid in this country? Why haven't you gotten angry for an increase in the minimum wage, or that some would rather there be NONE? And lastly, why if you're 18, not in at least a two-year college and registered to vote?

How many of you ACTUALLY knew Freddie Gray? Actually went to school with him, or his twin sister? Lived next to him? Attended his funeral? An 80% severed spine is an outrage, and in a sane world, should result in indictments. But the Baltimore Police Department Bill of Rights gives them 10 days before they have to speak to anyone. Hint: that's 10 days to get their story straight; they are suspended with pay. We're 50 years from the 1965 Voting Rights Act, for which the movie Selma dramatized. It's voting the 21st Century Poll Tax cum voter ID laws are trying to inhibit. It's voting, or lack thereof, that determines civilian oversight, and local laws: the Police and/or the Police Association can't come up with that kind of "right" whole cloth. The current law that will soon exist in Maryland is martial...your anger, though genuine, has no more power of resurrection anymore than the anarchy of terrorists will magically form mythical caliphates.

I was angry after Sean Bell, Amadou Diallo, Jordan Davis, Eric Garner, Rodney King, Travon Martin, Renisha McBride...trust me, I have decades of anger, high blood pressure, feelings of helplessness and sleepless nights over any and all of you. I have children I worry about as well; my lifespan shortens with every report - of yet another senseless death - that always goes national. You now have the Maryland National Guard deployed in your city to restore order. A CVS pharmacy and other businesses burned to the ground. Your grandmothers who had their prescriptions filled there have nowhere to go now. I don't know if indictments will immediately come down (or not), and neither do you. If it does go before a Grand Jury, it is secret by law, the jury of your "peers" will be active, registered voters who've followed this recent news, and possibly not look like you. The social media, political and propaganda machine has already labeled you "thugs." If you had a point, you may have already blown it away like chaff in the wind, and falling into negative stereotypes hasn't proved a good strategy in the long view.


I applaud the peaceful demonstrations; that doesn't mean you can't be angry, paste a placid grin on your faces while singing "we shall overcome." I'm sure Dr. King and a lot of young people who were your age back then bitten, beaten, hosed and jailed, and a lot of them killed had a few instances of being angry. The cameras caught the brutality of authorities against us, and soon turned world opinion against the violence perpetrated on innocent, law-abiding citizens. The cameras are catching your activities as well, it makes for a lot of views on YouTube and negative, stereotypical memes.

Yesterday was the first day of the first African American woman appointed Attorney General, Loretta Lynch (after a woefully sophomoric delay); yesterday was the birthday of Civil Rights activist Coretta Scott King. I'm sure her husband, Dr. King, my older sister who was one of those young people bitten, beaten, hosed and jailed, and a lot of them killed for Civil Rights, Voting Rights were angry - are angry, so you can do property damage, loot for your own benefit; express breathtaking episodes of pyromania and call it "protest."

Sorry for the post-Sunday rant. I'll do physics Wednesday.

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'The Robot's Daughter' ~ Cover art and design for W. Blake Heitzman (@navajobob)

Posted by Aidana WillowRaven on April 27, 2015 at 5:00pm


W. Blake Heitzman's, The Robot's Daughter, presented a challenge from the initial planning stage; my and Blake's first live chat on the contact page on my website.

In the end, Blake and I decide to choose a key, turning-point scene, that didn't also mimic what the title implies, allowing the title to offer a separate clue than the visual does ...

We also wanted to have a female-reader-friendly cover.

Sci-fi is predominantly a male genre. We knew anything about robots and spaceships would attract the guys, but we wanted something to catch the female eyes, as well. What better than a half-naked, modern day South-West Native American in jeans, boots, and cowboy hat alongside his furry, shape-shifting spirit-companion?

The biggest challenge? The lighting. Nighttime scenes are tricky to begin with, but nighttime scenes with a glowing spaceship that lights the environment is even trickier. The trick? LOTS of drafts and cussing ... lol.

From distant regions of the galaxy to the offices of the world’s most advanced corporation a war rages between good and evil, but for the robot’s daughter the horror comes from within. 

Don't forget to connect with Blake on social media and his blog:
Facebook  
Twitter 
Blog


Onto wrapping up the next book :-D


Until next time ...


This post edited by Grammarly* ~ NOW FREE FOR CHROME USERS!


*Blurbs and quotes provided are not edited by WillowRaven, but posted as provided by author/publisher. 
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'The Robot's Daughter' ~ Cover art and design for W. Blake Heitzman (@navajobob)

Posted by Aidana WillowRaven on April 27, 2015 at 5:00pm


W. Blake Heitzman's, The Robot's Daughter, presented a challenge from the initial planning stage; my and Blake's first live chat on the contact page on my website.

In the end, Blake and I decide to choose a key, turning-point scene, that didn't also mimic what the title implies, allowing the title to offer a separate clue than the visual does ...

We also wanted to have a female-reader-friendly cover.

Sci-fi is predominantly a male genre. We knew anything about robots and spaceships would attract the guys, but we wanted something to catch the female eyes, as well. What better than a half-naked, modern day South-West Native American in jeans, boots, and cowboy hat alongside his furry, shape-shifting spirit-companion?

The biggest challenge? The lighting. Nighttime scenes are tricky to begin with, but nighttime scenes with a glowing spaceship that lights the environment is even trickier. The trick? LOTS of drafts and cussing ... lol.

From distant regions of the galaxy to the offices of the world’s most advanced corporation a war rages between good and evil, but for the robot’s daughter the horror comes from within. 

Don't forget to connect with Blake on social media and his blog:
Facebook  
Twitter 
Blog


Onto wrapping up the next book :-D


Until next time ...


This post edited by Grammarly* ~ NOW FREE FOR CHROME USERS!


*Blurbs and quotes provided are not edited by WillowRaven, but posted as provided by author/publisher. 
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Fox News

Posted by G.H. Wright on April 27, 2015 at 11:39am
They are so ridiculous. Today, gang members are conspiring to kill police, and last week Iran was sending an armada to Yemen. Neither groups have the capability to do either.
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3-D Proteins...

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on April 27, 2015 at 7:06am
Image Source: Technology Review


Topics: 3-D Objects, Algorithm, Biology, Computer Science, Molecular Biology


TECHNOLOGY REVIEW: One of the great challenges in molecular biology is to determine the three-dimensional structure of large biomolecules such as proteins. But this is a famously difficult and time-consuming task.

The standard technique is x-ray crystallography, which involves analyzing the x-ray diffraction pattern from a crystal of the molecule under investigation. That works well for molecules that form crystals easily.

But many proteins, perhaps most, do not form crystals easily. And even when they do, they often take on unnatural configurations that do not resemble their natural shape.

So finding another reliable way of determining the 3-D structure of large biomolecules would be a huge breakthrough. Today, Marcus Brubaker and a couple of pals at the University of Toronto in Canada say they have found a way to dramatically improve a 3-D imaging technique that has never quite matched the utility of x-ray crystallography.

The new technique is based on an imaging process called electron cryomicroscopy. This begins with a purified solution of the target molecule that is frozen into a thin film just a single molecule thick.

This film is then photographed using a process known as transmission electron microscopy—it is bombarded with electrons and those that pass through are recorded. Essentially, this produces two-dimensional “shadowgrams” of the molecules in the film. Researchers then pick out each shadowgram and use them to work out the three-dimensional structure of the target molecule.

Abstract


Discovering the 3D atomic structure of molecules such as proteins and viruses is a fundamental research problem in biology and medicine. Electron Cryomicroscopy (Cryo-EM) is a promising vision-based technique for structure estimation which attempts to reconstruct 3D structures from 2D images. This paper addresses the challenging problem of 3D reconstruction from 2D Cryo-EM images. A new framework for estimation is introduced which relies on modern stochastic optimization techniques to scale to large datasets. We also introduce a novel technique which reduces the cost of evaluating the objective function during optimization by over five orders or magnitude. The net result is an approach capable of estimating 3D molecular structure from large scale datasets in about a day on a single workstation.

Physics arXiv:
Building Proteins in a Day: Efficient 3D Molecular Reconstruction
Marcus A. Brubaker, Ali Punjani, David J. Fleet

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The work of OLALEKAN JEYIFO: Architecturalist/ Futurist/ Artist

Posted by Carles CJ Juzang on April 27, 2015 at 4:00am

Going through my digital achieves (purging), I recovered a file I created of a number of contemporary African artists whom I draw inspiration, conceptualizations and graphic design trysts from. One of these artist is OLALEKAN JEYIFO. His Bio on his website reads like this:


"I am a Nigerian-born, Brooklyn-based artist and designer. In May of 2000 I received a Bachelor's degree in Architecture from Cornell University where my focus of study was primarily on investigating the relevant potential for a variety of computer software within the fields of art, design and architecture. After graduating I enjoyed a 4 year tenure as a senior designer at the inimitable dbox before continuing on to pursue my creative compulsions full-time. Since then I have been fortunate enough to exhibit my artwork in venues throughout the world as well as create beautiful visuals for a variety of amazing clients. I love what I do and I hope you do too."


And personally I DO as I share with BSFS just a few of HIS futurist visions in Illustrations, Computer and Digital Graphics, Architectural CAD drawings and 3D Printings.... Enjoy.

</p?

His Website with sooo much more is:
http://vigilism.com/

Twitter:
https://twitter.com/vigilismdesign

Tumblr:
http://vigilism.tumblr.com/

Instagram:
http://iconosquare.com/kidcadaver

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NExSS...

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on April 26, 2015 at 6:43am
Image Source


Topics: Aliens, Astrophysics, Biology, Exoplanets, Heliophysics, NASA, SETI


L’infini est infiniment infini: "The infinite is infinitely infinite."

The Nexus for Exoplanet System Science, or “NExSS”, hopes to better understand the various components of an exoplanet, as well as how the planet stars and neighbor planets interact to support life.

“This interdisciplinary endeavor connects top research teams and provides a synthesized approach in the search for planets with the greatest potential for signs of life,” says Jim Green, NASA’s Director of Planetary Science. “The hunt for exoplanets is not only a priority for astronomers, it’s of keen interest to planetary and climate scientists as well.”

NExSS will tap into the collective expertise from each of the science communities supported by NASA’s Science Mission Directorate:

-Earth scientists develop a systems science approach by studying our home planet.



-Planetary scientists apply systems science to a wide variety of worlds within our solar system.

-Heliophysicists add another layer to this systems science approach, looking in detail at how the Sun interacts with orbiting planets.

-Astrophysicists provide data on the exoplanets and host stars for the application of this systems science framework.

NExSS will bring together these prominent research communities in an unprecedented collaboration, to share their perspectives, research results, and approaches in the pursuit of one of humanity’s deepest questions: Are we alone?

“Two possibilities exist: either we are alone in the Universe or we are not. Both are equally terrifying.”

― Arthur C. Clarke

I posited a thought experiment, the post title inspired by the last two words of Sir Arthur C. Clarke's quote above.

Honestly, I saw this on my Facebook news feed and shared it. I then looked for the official NASA write up I italicize above.

I am prepared to review the data once its published, read also the papers and look at the presentations if they find things like (I'm assuming), spectrographic analysis of alien atmospheres and evidence of water; the telltale wobble of planets orbiting distant suns. I am looking forward to how this exploration will have application to our own planet. On that, I am hopeful.

I am also sadly, bracing for the kind of backlash that claimed Giordano Bruno*, though a bit of license was taken in presenting his story in the Cosmos reboot. I am prepared for the denialist, the conspiracy theorist; the flat earthers cum universe birthers. As I've gotten older, the hope of an expanding enlightenment has been snuffed by present darkness authoritarians that want others to grope in their caves; rammed down our collective throats.

* In 1584 Giordano wrote a thesis entitled "On the Infinite Universe and Worlds." Bruno argued that if a person believes it logical that even one other world likely exists, that it reasonably follows that all other worlds exist.

NASA: NASA’s NExSS Coalition to Lead Search for Life on Distant Worlds

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SUPER STRIKAS, Football (soccer) Animated and Comic Series

Posted by Carles CJ Juzang on April 26, 2015 at 6:00am

The marketing done with this franchise is what I am striving for with ALL of Abyssinia Media Group® productions. This is not science fiction but the SOUTH AFRICAN production studio Strika Entertainment and Canadian Audio marketeers DACAPO Productions have a REAL diverse and multicultural, family friendly hit based around a SA soccer team and organization. Been out since 2008, so check it out and get at me about your thoughts on their style, and unified animation, comics and marketing strategy. I find interesting how the Strika Entertainment Production company gets conglomerates like KFC, Neslie's MILO, Golden Penny Noodles, Chevron, Caltex, Texaco and First Bank to sponsor their website and Facebook page. I count Season One with 39 animated episodes all started with a South African Comic that now is a part a Pan African Culture.... Enjoy

http://www.supastrikas.co.za/

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Evolution of Television...

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on April 25, 2015 at 6:19am
Image Source - Starts at Sixty: How the Jetson's Predicted the Future


Topics: Consumer Electronics, Electrical Engineering, Humor, Technology


The first television I remember my family owning was black and white, and so largely was society's views of social interaction, equality, etc. It used cathode ray tube technology, and as I recall looking in with my father, a lot of vacuum tubes - if they blew, you had to replace them - precursors to integrated circuits now, their usage in the space program fostered by NASA's need to reduce launch payload size into space (tubes are also quite heavy). They are not extinct, and do still have their specialized uses. We needed "rabbit ear" antennas to receive a radio frequency (RF) signal on the television; a large antenna connected by an analog cable usually on the roof. To attenuate a signal properly for my parents, sometimes I had to hold the ears and stand - absolutely still - next to the set while Walter Cronkite delivered after the sound of teletype actual NEWS completely devoid of theme songs, bombast and "infotainment," because as voiced by his signature line: "that's the way it was." I was also the resident channel surfer, AKA the analog remote control and sometimes dishwasher. Absolutely NO ONE looked at television during a lightning storm (and, really shouldn't now), but surge and electrical fire during the age of fuses was a far more prevalent danger back then before better power distribution schemes and GFCI. There was ABC, CBS, NBC and maybe a few local UHF channels if you were lucky. Television played the Pledge of Allegiance, and went OFF at midnight to a pattern, or static snow.

However, it was Saturday morning cartoons where I saw my first flat screen. Jane, Judy, Elroy, George, Rosie the robot maid and Astro the dog: The Jetsons got a lot of things right about the future - as the link below the picture above attests. There's a lot going on in that image: a video chat with a doctor (we call Skype, among others now); a hint of 3-D technology - the doctor "leaning out" of the screen - and nanotechnology (though I'm dubious on the article's claim: Secret Squirrel did the same trick, after all). And since I'm not too far from my sixth decade, I'm very fortunate to find out it won't be over for me. Sadly though, with the advent of 24-hour news closely followed by hundreds (thousands?) of 24-hour cable channels with appropriate-age cartoon channels, I've noticed a casualty of this advance in technology: one of the very mediums that probably started a lot of future designers, engineers and scientists dreaming up how to bring about what was artists' imaginations to pass...

...Saturday morning cartoons! May they rest in peace (and syndication).

Institute of Physics: Flat Screen Displays (PDF); Television (History)
The Royal Society:
Flat-panel electronic displays: a triumph of physics, chemistry and engineering, Cyril Hilsum


Post script: I will be moving to new apartments for this reason, apparently legal, but unfortunate nonetheless. I have a few posts "in the hopper" that can auto-post, but because I will be packing, I may take a blog-break if the boxes prove overwhelming. I'll let you know how it goes.
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Giant Leap...

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on April 24, 2015 at 7:50am
International Space Station - Facts and Figures Page


Topics: International Space Station, NASA, Space, Space Exploration


Growing up in the Apollo era, spaceflight and space exploration were "big deals" that stopped traffic, ensued water cooler conversations and dominated - at least in nerd culture - deep thoughts regarding where we were heading. It wasn't until the Space Shuttle Program that spaceflight became humdrum; routine. We'd pause when Challenger or Columbia tragedies dominated the news cycle, briefly reflect, give heartfelt condolences and go back to our technology-centered lives. My sincere hope is going forward we don't lose our need to explore and sense of wonder, nor suppress it with fear, propaganda, empty talking points and arrogant convictions. My optimism is many of our future leaders - in high school and college now - get to experience the "overlook effect" and maybe this cooperation will become a little more widespread, and sanguinely for out continuance, quite routine.

Since 1998, humanity’s had a permanent presence in space with the International Space Station. The ISS, which circles the Earth once every 90 minutes, is a model of global cooperation: A joint cooperation among five national space agencies, crewed by astronauts from more than 15 countries. Take an inside look at the daily life and science that goes on inside the space station whizzing by at more than 200 miles above our heads.
World Science Festival Staff
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Radio Electron...

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on April 23, 2015 at 6:28am
An electron in a magnetic field will turn circles and emit radiation. Adrian Cho - Science Mag


Topics: Cyclotron, Electromagnetism, Neutrinos, Particle Physics, Radiation


Physicists have long known that charged particles like electrons will spiral in a magnetic field and give off radiation. But nobody had ever detected the radio waves emanating from a single whirling electron—until now. The striking new technique researchers used to do it might someday help particle physicists answer a question that has vexed them for decades: How much does a ghostly particle called the neutrino weigh?

"This is a great achievement on its own, and we're really looking forward to seeing this technology develop over time," says Guido Drexlin, an astroparticle physicist at the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology in Germany who was not involved in the work.

To understand the experiment, suppose an electron flies horizontally through a vertical magnetic field. It will experience a sideways force that is proportional to both its velocity and the strength of the field. That constant sideways shove will cause the electron to run in circles (see diagram). But that turning will also cause the electron to radiate electromagnetic waves, much as a wet dishcloth will fling off drops of water if you whirl it above your head. Of course, the radiation will sap the electron's energy, so that it will gradually spiral inward.

This effect has been understood for a century. It's used to generate x-ray beams by sending electrons racing around circular particle accelerators known as synchrotrons. Such radiation also emanates from swirling particles in interstellar space. Now, 27 physicists with Project 8, an experiment based at the University of Washington, Seattle, have detected radiation from a single electron. "I thought surely somebody must have done this," says Brent VanDevender, a nuclear physicist and team member from Pacific Northwest National Laboratory in Richland, Washington. "I looked and looked and looked in the literature and couldn't find anything."

Science Mag: Physicists detect radio waves from a single electron, Adrian Cho

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Enter the Fray

Posted by G.H. Wright on April 22, 2015 at 6:57pm
What's the purpose of travelling the cosmos, without the power of a miniature sun at your back, or rather at your fingertips?Then Commander Natalie Jamison as recorded by live correspondents of the Interstellar Associated Press, circa early 24th century.
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Current From Noise...

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on April 22, 2015 at 6:54am


In this electron micrograph of the energy-harvesting device, the lower quantum dot is the red blob at the top of the red triangle. The upper quantum dot is the blue blob at the tip of the blue triangle. The image shows an area that is about 2 μm wide. (Courtesy: F Hartmann et al.)

Topics: Coupled Quantum Dots, Electronics, Quantum Mechanics, Thermodynamics


Two quantum dots have been used to generate an electrical current from voltage noise. The device was created by physicists in Germany, who say that it could lead to the development of systems that convert waste heat into useful energy.

Electronic devices generate large amounts of excess heat that must be dissipated. Instead of simply discarding this energy, using it to do useful work could revolutionize the electronics industry, and make it possible to create more efficient devices. Indeed, for more than a decade, physicists have been thinking up ways to convert this heat into electrical currents that can do work, such as power electronic devices.

Now, Lukas Worschech and colleagues at the University of Würzburg in Germany have verified experimentally that random voltage fluctuations can be rectified to drive a direct current. The experiment uses voltage noise to mimic the hot and cold spots of waste heat, and is therefore not a direct demonstration of waste heat being converted into work. However, team member Fabian Hartmann explains that it shows that small voltage fluctuations can drive a current: "A device derived from our sample might be able to provide the necessary power to drive autonomous and self-powered systems."

Physics World: Physicists generate electrical currents from noise,
Katherine Kornei

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Help Support The Flying Bullet: A Sci-Fi Photo Novel

Posted by Christopher Love on April 21, 2015 at 11:26am

Click here to support this project

My name is Christopher Love and I am the creator of the Flying Bullet. 

The concept of the photo novel came about due to my love for the old black and white sci-fi serials and films of 40s, 50s and 60s like Buck Rogers, Flash Gordon, King of the Rocket Men and Son of Ingagi. 

WHAT IF!!! there was a black and white photo novel starring an African American hero.  I imagine the hero would be based on real African American heroes of that era.  The Tuskegee Airmen were heroes of the highest caliber who fought discrimination and the right to defend a country that didn't always defend them.

So now I have my hero, LT Curt Masters, a Tuskegee Airman, who is kidnapped by a UFO and goes on the high octane sci-fi adventure  and exploring what it is to be a man and a human being.  The graphic novel will be drawn in Black and White to keep with its inspirational roots. 

The reason I write and produce stories featuring ethnically diverse characters is because their are very little heroes in mainstream media that look like the rest of us. So I am creating a graphic novel called "The Flying Bullet" which will be a SCI-FI adventure dealing with a Tuskegee Airman being transported billions of mile away from Earth in 1945. This photo novel is a 100% classic science fiction story. I took the rich history of african americans and combined it with the science fiction genre. The story deals with the struggles of african americans to be counted as full citizens of the United States in defense of their country during WWII. Curt Master soons discovers that the planet Earth is entangled in a bigger intergalactic struggle.

Soon Heroes Like Me Entertainment will produce original, low-budget, short films in the action, adventure and sci-fi genre starring everyone. I'm not asking for a hand-out but an opportunity to market the films to cable companies like TV-One, BET, SCI-FI Channel, Nickelodeon, and others networks or distribute by DVD and Video download.

Check out my website at heroeslikeme.com where you can see my other published work and content. If you have any further questions please email me at chris@heroeslikeme.com

I believe that everyone deserves heroes that look like them.

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/the-flying-bullet-a-sci-fi-action-photonovel/x/6107318

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Shades of Sith...

Posted by Reginald L. Goodwin on April 21, 2015 at 6:18am


This Hubble Space Telescope image of four colliding galaxies in the Abell 3827 cluster shows the telltale signature of gravitational lensing--the bending of light's path by matter--in the form of blue arcs. The image suggests that dark matter in the cluster may interact with itself through some "dark force."

Credit: ESO

Topics: Astrophysics, Dark Energy, Dark Matter, Gravitational Lensing, Humor

Title note: with Episode VII coming out Christmas, I couldn't resist!


After decades of studying dark matter scientists have repeatedly found evidence of what it cannot be but very few signs of what it is. That might have just changed. A study of four colliding galaxies for the first time suggests that the dark matter in them may be interacting with itself through some unknown force other than gravity that has no effect on ordinary matter. The finding could be a significant clue as to what comprises the invisible stuff that is thought to contribute 24 percent of the universe.

“This result, if confirmed, could upend our understanding of dark matter,” says physicist Don Lincoln of the Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory in Illinois, who was not involved in the research. So-called “self-interacting dark matter” has been suggested for some time but it has generally been considered unorthodox. The simplest model of dark matter portrays it as a single particle—one that happens to interact with others of its kind and normal matter very little or not at all. Physicists favor the most basic explanations that fit the bill and add extra complications only when necessary, so this scenario tends to be the most popular. For dark matter to interact with itself requires not only dark matter particles but also a dark force to govern their interactions and dark boson particles to carry this force. This more complex picture mirrors our understanding of normal matter particles, which interact through force-carrying particles. For example, protons interact through the electromagnetic force, which is carried by particles called photons (particles of light).

Scientific American:
Dark Matter May Feel a “Dark Force” That the Rest of the Universe Does Not,
Clara Moskowitz

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